Photographing the Queen: the 1963 Royal visit (Part 1)

Royal Yacht Britannia in Waikorire (Pilot Bay), Mt Maunganui, 9 Feb 1963
Bay of Plenty Times, 120 (medium)-format film negative
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Ref. gca-4724

When the Royal Yacht Britannia with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip on board steamed through the Tauranga Harbour entrance on the morning of 9 February 1963, you might have been forgiven for thinking that the entire population of Mount Maunganui and Tauranga had turned out to see them. Pilot Bay was packed with every kind of craft imaginable, and photographers from the local, regional and international press planned to capture the event from every angle, including the air.

Prince Philip and the Queen on board RMS Britannia, Mt Maunganui, 9 Feb 1963
Bay of Plenty Times, 35mm format film negative
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Ref. gcc-1619

It was not the first Royal Visit to New Zealand. The earliest had been by Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh in 1869 and 1870, including a visit to Tauranga on 13 December 1870. The Queen was the first reigning monarch to visit, touring the country with her husband in the summer of 1953-54, with New Zealanders going to extraordinary extents to present themselves in the best manner possible. Sheep were dyed red, white and blue, unsightly buildings hidden by screens, roads sealed in haste, and it is estimated that three out of every four New Zealanders saw the Queen at more than 110 functions in 46 different centres over almost six weeks.

New Zealand Royal Visit 1963 Itinerary
Collection of Archives New Zealand, Ref. AEFZ 22624 W5727 2618 3105/0068-0070

In 1963 the itinerary was trimmed substantially, with Mt Maunganui-Tauranga the third of eight stops over a mere 11 days.

Press photographer, Mayor David Mitchell, Prince Philip and the Queen at Coronation Pier, 9 Feb 1963
Still from 16mm movie footage by Norman Blackie, “Coloured Fountain & Royal Visit – 1963”
Collection of Nga Taonga Sound and Vision
Digitised for Tauranga City Libraries, Pae Korokī

After being delivered to the wharf off Tauranga’s Strand by motor launch, the Royal couple were taken on a ceremonial drive through the streets to Memorial Park, where a public welcome from a crowd of 5000 was led by the Mayor and other dignitaries in the Soundshell. “Twelve ballet girls dressed as Greek maidens danced in front of the Queen scattering pink and white rose petals from shallow baskets.”

A press photographer is seen in the still above taken from amateur movie footage. He wields two medium-format TLR cameras, including a professional Mamiyaflex C2 with eye-level finder, and may have been responsible for some of the Bay of Plenty Times footage from that day that survives in the Tauranga Library’s collection.

Press photographers wait for the Royal Party – the Queen and Mayor Mitchell at Memorial Park
Detail from Bay of Plenty Times, 120- and 35mm format film negatives
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Refs. gca-4688, gcc-1632

The press photographers were waiting for them at each step of the procession, including this film cameraman from ATN’s Channel 7. The Queen and Duke proceeded to the Domain before transferring to an open military Land Rover to “drive through ranks of 20,000 assembled school children.”

Photographers scramble to catch the Queen arriving at Ocean Beach, Mt Maunganui, 9 Feb 1963
Bay of Plenty Times, 35mm format film negative
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Ref. gcc-1606

The limousine then took them back through the crowds to the wharf, and they were transferred across to the Mount to watch a surf carnival from a temporary grandstand at Ocean Beach.

Mt Maunganui Mayor Harris with the Queen and Duke, Salisbury Wharf, Mt Maunganui, 9 Feb 1963
Bay of Plenty Times, 35mm format film negative
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Ref. gcc-1602

The Royal party then left for the Britannia via Salisbury Wharf, where the photographers were once again in attendance from every conceivable vantage point.

RMS Britannia leaves Tauranga Harbour, 9 Feb 1963
Bay of Plenty Times, 35mm format film negative
Tauranga City Libraries, Gifford-Cross Collection, Pae Korokī Ref. gcc-1618

Many of these photographs taken by Bay of Plenty Times staff have been preserved and digitized by Tauranga Library, and are available to view on their web site, Pae Korokī.

Correction. An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified a photographer as BOPT journalist Max Avery - thank you to Max for pointing out that it is not, in fact, him, and that he was fully occupied on the Mount side of the harbour during the visit. If anyone is able to identify the photographer in the third photo of this article, I would be very grateful.

Part 2 of this story will look at amateur photography during the Royal Visit.

References

Queen Elizabeth – Page 3 – Royal tours, URL: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/queen-elizabeth/royal-tours, (Ministry for Culture and Heritage), updated 4-Feb-2022

New Zealand's first royal visit, URL: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/page/new-zealands-first-royal-visit, (Ministry for Culture and Heritage), updated 19-Oct-2020

The royal visit, 1953-54, URL: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/royal-visit-of-1953-54, (Ministry for Culture and Heritage), updated 6-Jan-2016

Programme for Today, Press, Volume CII, Issue 30052, 9 February 1963, Page 12. URL: https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19630209.2.103 (Papers Past)

Early Crowd at Wharf, Press, Volume CII, Issue 30053, 11 February 1963, Page 12. URL: https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19630211.2.97